It's hard to believe what Sterlings say

Updated 10:47 pm, Friday, May 23, 2014

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver might back a Magic Johnson-led bid to buy the Clippers from the Sterlings.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver might back a Magic Johnson-led bid to buy the Clippers from the Sterlings.

Photo: Mark J. Terrill, Associated Press

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OAKLAND, CA - MAY 01: Larry Ellison, the chief executive officer of Oracle Corporation, watches the Golden State Warriors play against the Los Angeles Clippers in Game Six of the Western Conference Quarterfinals during the 2014 NBA Playoffs at ORACLE Arena on May 1, 2014 in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) less

OAKLAND, CA - MAY 01: Larry Ellison, the chief executive officer of Oracle Corporation, watches the Golden State Warriors play against the Los Angeles Clippers in Game Six of the Western Conference ... more

Photo: Ezra Shaw, Getty Images

It's hard to believe what Sterlings say

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The Sterlings are not to be trusted. There was big news Friday when Donald agreed to transfer his ownership share of the Los Angeles Clippers to his wife, Shelly, supposedly triggering the process in which she sells the team outright. But let's just see how it plays out.

We're already hearing "hold on just a minute" when it comes to the specific legal ramifications, and you can find those details elsewhere. In essence, though, two basic truths are in play: Ever so slowly, the Sterlings are giving up the fight. And the bidding for this team, ripe for a Hollywood screenplay, will cause a major shakeup on the L.A. sports scene.

Let's assume that as summer unfolds, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver puts the finishing touches on the stranglehold he applied to Donald Sterling last month. Silver will then command final say on who buys the team. Can you imagine the bidding? The Magic Johnson/Guggenheim group will be fiercely involved. There are reports that Oprah Winfreywants to team up with Larry Ellisonand David Geffen, and that Yao Ming is assembling a group of Chinese investors. The sale price could well exceed $1 billion - and what's next? Does L.A. become a Clippers town?

That might take some time. Just as the wealthy and tradition-rich Giants hold an inherent edge on the A's, the Lakers have a glamorous history and far more passionate fan base. Even as the Clippers staged a memorable seven-game playoff series against the Warriors (admittedly, with the Sterling issue hanging over Staples Center), the crowd's interest seemed stifled and sporadic amid a torrent of hideous, manufactured noise.

Does that change if big-time power brokers sway the Hollywood elite? Would Billy Crystaldrop to No. 17 on the most-important-celebrity list at Clippers games? It will be fascinating to find out. More relevant, from the Warriors' standpoint, is that an impending sale wipes out the possibility of a Clippers meltdown: players and coach Doc Riversseeking avenues to move elsewhere. It appears we're about to witness a spiritual uplift for the Warriors' biggest rival.

Strange call

Landon Donovan didn't make the World Cup squad, and the news might not sit well with longtime U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard, who told reporters Monday, "It's a very easy equation: If he's on the field, he's easily one of our best players and he strikes fear in opponents." ... Defer to the experts on Donovan, but as a longtime admirer of international play, I'm always glad to see new faces on the U.S. team. The future tends to look brighter than the past. ... Caroline Garcia caused a huge stir at the 2011 French Open when, at 17, she took a 6-3, 4-1 lead over Maria Sharapovabefore surrendering to the gravity of the moment. Andy Murraypronounced her "a future No. 1" at the time, and he wasn't alone. The smooth-flowing Garcia dropped off the mainstream map for a while, but she enters next week's tournament on a roll, including her first tour title (beating JelenaJankovic at Bogota), reaching the quarterfinals of Madrid (a three-set loss to Aga Radwanska), and winning all three of her matches (including doubles) during France's Fed Cup rout of the U.S. Behold a spectacular first-round pairing at Roland Garros: Garcia against resurgent Ana Ivanovic.

One of Stanford's most notable graduates, surfer-oceanographer Ricky Grigg, died this week at 77. A natural in big waves from the days of his youth in Southern California, Grigg was among the early pioneers on Oahu's North Shore in the late 1950s before earning a bachelor's degree from Stanford (1958) and a Ph.D. from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. He then moved to the islands full time, becoming a professor in the University of Hawaii's Oceanography Department and making sure he caught every giant swell at Waimea Bay and Sunset Beach. Grigg won the prestigious Duke Kahanamoku contest in 1967, in what fellow big-wave legend Greg Nollcalled "maybe the best day I've ever seen at Sunset," and he was widely admired for his joyous approach to harrowing situations. ... Pretty weak stunt by Rory McIlroy, calling off his wedding to Caroline Wozniackiafter the invitations had gone out. "Girl, he doesn't deserve you," wrote Jane McManuson espnW.com. ... ESPN's Tim Kurkjianweighed in with a great story about Bruce Bochy's formidable head: "He told me when he got traded as a player, he'd have to take his helmet with him, and his new team would have to spray its colors on, because it wasn't going to have a helmet that fit his head." Bochy wasn't much of a hitter, but one night he shocked everyone with a walk-off homer off Nolan Ryan. "After the game, the Padres ran a red carpet from the front of the clubhouse all the way to Bochy's locker, where a six-pack of beer - with ice - was waiting inside his helmet," said Kurkjian. "Terry Kennedytold me you can get a six-pack of beer in a lot of guys' helmets. But only in Bochy's can you get it with ice."

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